30 Days of Night's David Slade set to direct "Hannibal" pilot for NBC

Who'd of thought going from film to TV would be a step up...but in a way, that might be a true path for David Slade coming off the TWILIGHT: ECLIPSE debacle.

And let's be clear, when I say debacle, I mean critically, not financially. I'm sure if Slade wanted to continue on with prepubescent fantasy films, he easily could have. Instead, he's opted to give direction to one Hannibal Lecter in NBC's new series. And in my opinion, yes that is a step up!

Deadline has it that Slade will direct the pilot episode of "Hannibal." Just last week we heard Hugh Dancy had won the key role of Agent Will Graham in the high-profile series. Slade makes sense from the viewpoint of NBC, as he recently directed pilot episode of "Awake" for the studio.

As for "Hannibal," the project is described as a contemporary thriller series featuring the classic characters from Thomas Harris’ novel Red Dragon – FBI agent Will Graham and his mentor Dr. Hannibal Lecter – who are re-introduced at the beginning of their budding relationship.